Springtime in Prague?

The weather has been so abnormally warm here, its frightening. Jess and I were walking Petrin Hill yesterday to get groceries, (that's right, I get to walk through one of the most beautiful parks in the world with one of the most beautiful views in the world to run errands) and I saw flowers blooming. I had to stop and take a picture because I hardly believed it. In the middle of February in Prague, flowers are blooming. They are so lovely too.
Taking the advantage of the nice weather, Josh and I went to the Prague Zoo this weekend, it was a lot of fun, and only a 30 min. tram ride and 15 min. bus ride away. The bus ride home was even crazier...there wasn't even room to breath.
The zoo was a little short on animals because many did not survive the flood in 2002, but there were a lot of active animals which I assume is a good sign. My favorite part was the lions because they looked so relaxed and they had a great view of Prague from their area. It was also the only part of the zoo free of prams (that's stollers for those not hip to the English lingo) and little children, so it was clam and quiet.
I am really getting into the swing of classes now. Reading is a nice break from the constant walking, wandering and discovering. That last sentence sounded sarcastic, and generally it would be, however; I am being completely serious. My literature class is great, the professor really gets into the topics and I think that he has an interesting view on literature from a Czech point of view.
I have reached the stage in my stay where all we do is a lot of hanging out. The initial attraction of the city has worn off a little and we have started returning to restaurants we like and started to make a lot of dinners. Tonight was definitely a taste of home night: we made cheeseburgers and french fries, all on the hot plates of course, which was a bit difficult, but the effort was completely worth it. If anyone has any ideas on good meals to make on hot plates I am completely open to your thoughts, I am getting a little tired of chicken and vegetables and pasta, seperate and combined in any order.

---

---